How can the latest tech developments improve workplace efficiency, productivity and profits?
Food Costing: ingredients costs are always changing, and it can be a surprise how much a seafood pasta really costs when you weigh all the ingredients! Modern
recipe costing systems are usually cloud-based, so they’re accessible on your PC, iPad or phone. Once you load the ingredients and write a recipe, you’ll see the honest and accurate profit margins. That pork belly burger makes more money than you thought!
Food & Beverage Ordering: in the old days, it was a late-night phone call by the chef to an answering service, hoping the delivery matched what was on a scrap of paper. Modern apps like
Ordermentum,
Cooking the Books and those offered by smart suppliers, let you work from a smartphone and repeat previous orders. If your aunty can do it with Coles online, so can you!
Managing Staff: is rostering the worst job in the world? Maybe, and updating it on a spreadsheet after 50 phone calls is not the best use of your time. Modern rostering should also show you the wage costs, shift by shift – online systems like
Tanda,
Deputy and
Ento allow the chef to see exactly what the roster will cost, before it goes public. These online systems also allow staff to request shift changes, make announcements, and work out correct pay rates for different shifts.
A Better Experience for Customers: many people want to book online instead of phoning. Services like
The Fork,
NowBookIt and
OpenTable make this easy, and can help with reminders and table allocation. Next step is ordering at the table (OAT) and at kiosks –
Orderup have OAT in the works, and you can try kiosks at McDonalds and some
PappaRich. Lower wages, improved upselling and a better flow of orders for the kitchen.
Customer Sales & Payments: Point of Sales equipment runs the front of house, and gives accurate information about customer spending and menu popularity. A modern POS integrates with bookkeeping, rostering and delivery systems. When customers want to pay, the payment terminal should be fast and flexible: integrated with the POS and allowing for tips and split bills.
Tyro is the most up-to-date with these features, and bank systems are trying to catch up.
Managing Delivery Services: People love the convenience of home delivery, so smart operators learn to make the most from
UberEats,
Deliveroo and similar services. Systems like
OrderUp allow you to run your
own online ordering system if you don’t want to pay high delivery fees. Your POS system should have these services integrated for a smooth flow of orders to the kitchen – there’s real money to be made here.
